Cigarette holder fitted with removable filter cartridge



June 21, 1966 J. JANY 3,256,890

CIGARETTE HOLDER FITTED WITH REMOVABLE FILTER CARTRIDGE Filed July 5,1963 FIG.2

as k /4 13 United States Patent 1 Claim. 61431-173 Numerous articles inmedical journals and papers delivered at Medical Society meetings havebrought in to sharp focus the effect of cigarette smoking on humanbeings.

The present invention is intended to create a new cigarette holdercharacterized in that it contains a removable cartridge containing achemical filtering fluid, in order to remove from the cigarette smokethe elements which might-prove injurious to the lungs and membranes ofthe human body and the health of the smoker in general.

Another object of this invention is to provide a suitable valvulardevice fitted in the holder section which prevents inadvertent loss offluid from the cartridge and also provides a cooling chamber for tobaccosmoke passing therethrough.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is side view of the assembled cigarette holder;

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal section through the assembled cigarette holder,with the various components thereof in place.

FIG. 3 is an exploded longitudinal section through the cigarette holdershown in FIG. 1, with the cartridge which has a pair of end capsattached thereto, detached from the mouthpiece and the holder section ofthe cigarette holder.

In the drawings, the same reference numerals designate the same partsthroughout the various views.

One embodiment of the construction shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, comprisesa tubular tapered mouthpiece 10, which is removably attached to atransparent tubular body made of a plastic material, or glass. One endof the tubular cartridge is fitted over hollow cylindrical projection ofthe mouthpiece, having a diameter smaller than the diameter of themouthpiece, whereby the cartridge may be assembled to this latter in theposition shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

The opposite end of the cartridge is supported by a similar hollowcylindrical projection 18 which the cigarette holder 19 is provided ofas shown in the assembled position of FIGS. 1 and 2. The cartridge isfilled with a fluid 13, to a level indicated by the line 14, shown inFIGS. 1 and 3, which is substantially parallel to and located below thelongitudinal axis of the cartridge, the cartridge being nominallysealed, except for a plurality of tubular passages leading thereto, ashereinafter described.

The cigarette holder which is attached to one end of the cartridgeconsists of a tubular body 19, one end of which having a hollowcylindrical projection 18 integral therewith, for receiving one end ofthe cartridge in the assembled position shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

The tubular holder section has a valvular device 16 consisting of aplurality of spaced circular baffles 24, 25, 26 inserted therein,saiddevice having one end placed against the bottom 20 of the hollowcylindrical projection 18, and, on the opposite end forming a cuppedtubular cigarette receiving portion 22 defined by the last baflie 28,constituting its bottom wall, and provided with a central hole 29.

Each of the baflles 25, 26 has a small opening 23, 27 therethrough, theopenings being staggered relative to one another, thus forcing the smokepassing through the central opening29 through the bottom wall of thecigaice rette receiving portion of the valvular device to take acircuitous path, from the holder section to the cartridge. A tubularconnector 30 is inserted in and attached to the rear bafiie 24 of thevalvular device 19, the connector projecting through the rear wall 20 ofthe hollow cylindrical neck 18, of the holder member, said connectorbeing located diametrically opposite the opening 23 through theadjoining baflle 25. p

A pipe 32 projects from the free end of the mouthpiece 10 within thehollow collar 15 and comprises a continuation of the axial channel 33 asshown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

The suction pipe allows the smoke, after it passes through the fluid inthe cartridge, to pass therethrough to the mouth of the smoker.

Under normal conditions, where the level of the fluid is below thesuction pipe 32, as shown in FIG. 1 the smoke after passing through thefluid would pass through the upper area of the cartridge above the fluid13, thence through the suction pipe 32. Because of the length of thepipe 32 and its position above the level in the fluid in the cartridge,it is not likely that fluid will 'flow into the channel 33 even thoughthe holder may be tilted in ordinary use.

The size of the openings through the baffles 24, 25, 26 in the holdersection 19, of the cigarette holder is relatively small, the openingsbeing staggered relative to the circumferential wall of the holder so asto restrict the passage of fluid from the cartridge into the holder endof the holder section. -While a small amount of fluid might seep throughthe connector 30, connecting the holder section with the cartridge, thiswould be trapped in the area 33, between the adjoining baflles, andprevented from passing'to the cigarette end of the holder section by thestaggering of the openings 23, 27 through the bafiles, as the opening 27through the bafile 25 is located quite a distance above the connectortube, thus preventing the passage of fluid from the area 33 through theopening 27.

When the holder is in use, the suction generated through the mouthpieceof the holder, which passes through the suction pipe of the cartridge,generates a partial vacuum in the cartridge. This partial vacuum tendsto draw the smoke duly cooled when it passes across the valvular system16, from the cigarette through the fluid, the fluid thereby absorbingnicotine, tars and other possibly harmful ingredients, which arecontained in the smoke, the harmful ingredients being restrained by thefluid. The small diameter of the suction pipe and its position, abovethe level of the fluid in the cartridge, prevent the passage of fluidfrom the cartridge to the mouth of the user.

The viscosity of the fluid in the cartridge assists in restraining thefluid from entering the connector 30 and therefore the holder section ofthe smoking device.

Before assembly to the mouthpiece and the holder section, the tubularcartridge has a pair of tubular caps 34, 35 made of a plastic material,fitted into ends thereof, so that when a new cartridge is required, itis necessary but totake said caps. away from a single cartridge and thento fit it over the cylindrical projection with which both the mouthpieceand the holder are provided.

When the holder is in actual use, the cartridge is used until the fluidcontained therein becomes discolored and relatively dark, due to theaccumulation of nicotine, tars and other ingredients extracted fromthetobacco smoke. The discoloration would show up through thetransparent tubular body of the cartridge. When this occurs, themouthpiece 10 and the cigarette holder section of the holder would beremoved from the cartridge and a new cartridge containing a fresh supplyof fluid substituted therefor, the mouthpiece and the holder sectionbeing attached to the new cartridge in the positions shown in FIGS. 1and 2.

In order to replace a cartridge, after the fluid in it is discolored,one of the caps 34 attached to one end of the new tubular cartridgeshown in FIG. 3, is removed, and the end of the tubular cartridge isinserted on the hollow cylindrical projection 15 of the mouthpiece, theother cap remaining in place. After that, the second cap 35 is removedfrom the cartridge, and the end of the tubular cartridge inserted in thehollow cylindrical projection 18 of the holder, the fluid thus beingprevented from leaking out of the cartridge.

The cartridge is then in the assembled position shown in FIGS. 1 and 2with the fluid level 14 substantially as indicated therein.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that my presentinvention is not limited to the specific details described above andshown in the drawings, and that various modifications are possible incarrying out the features of the invention and the operation, assembly,and method of utilization thereof, without departing from the spirit andscope of the appended claim.

What I claim is:

A cigarette holder combination comprising a tubular mouthpiece having atubular projection extending therefrom, a disposable filter cartridgeconsisting of a length of transparent tubing of constant cross-sectionremovably supported at one end by said mouthpiece with said tubularprojection projecting into said cartridge, said cartridge beingpartially filled with a liquid of a predetermined composition forremoving deleterious matter from smoke, a tubular cigarette holdersection having a rear wall with an opening therethrough, said cigaretteholder section removably supporting the other end of the filtercartridge; and a valvular device slidingly received in said cigaretteholder section and consisting of an elongated tubular member havingtherewithin a plurality of equally-spaced baffles each having an openingtherethrough, said openings being staggered relative to one another,said valvular device having a hollow cylindrical projection integraltherewith and projecting through said opening in said rear Wall of saidcigarette holder section into said cartridge.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 214,586 4/1879Riedel 131-173 933,360 9/1909 Carabias 131173 1,890,920 12/1932 Strawn131210 1,914,466 6/1933 Spragins 131-212 2,387,381 10/1945 Zuckerman131210 X 2,805,670 9/1957 Wang 131-173 X 3,062,220 11/1962 Brothers131210 X FOREIGN PATENTS 86,246 11/1921 Austria. 13,747 1851 GreatBritain.

SAMUEL KOREN, Primary Examiner.

JOSEPH S. REICH, ABRAHAM G. STONE,

Assistant Examiners.

